This seems very harsh. But did he have a purpose? Of course. But what was it?
Why Did Jesus Call a Gentile Woman a ‘Dog’?
Reply
Category Archives: Apologetics
Was Luke confused about Theudas in Acts 5:36?
What is the answer to the question? What does the evidence say?
Was Zechariah, ‘Son of Berekiah,’ the Martyred Prophet?
Did Matthew get things wrong (23:35)? There is a mystery here to be solved.
Jesus Says No to His Brothers
Bible Study series: John 7:1-9. Jesus told his brothers no about going to the feast in Jerusalem. Then he went just a little later. How do we explain this?
Did Mark Confuse the High Priest Abiathar with His Father Ahimelech?
Once again the hyper-critics pounce. But do we have a reasonable explanation?
Was Luke a Careless Historian? Three Accounts of Paul’s Conversion
There seems to be one tiny difference in two of the three accounts in Acts 9:1-9; 22:6-11; 26:12-18.
“You Will Not Complete Towns of Israel until Son of Man Comes”
That’s a puzzling verse, spoken when Jesus commissioned his twelve disciples to go out on a short-term mission trip and then come back. It seems as though the Second Coming will happen before they preach in all the towns of Israel. Was Jesus a failed prophet? How do we solve this problem?
“Some Shall Not Experience Death until They See Son of Man Coming”
Was Jesus a failed prophet? Matt. 16:28, Mark 9:1, and Luke 9:27 say that some standing there with Jesus would not experience death until they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom. How can that be true, when the Second Coming has not happened in the past two thousand years (and counting)? The answer will surprise you because it goes beyond the “standard” one.
What Jesus Told High Priest and Sanhedrin Now Makes Sense
Was Jesus a failed prophet? Critics seem to think so because he told Caiaphas the high priest and the Sanhedrin (the highest court and council of Judaism) that they would see him coming, sitting in clouds of glory.
Slavery and Freedom in the Bible
Critics of the Bible forget that it also advocates liberty. It’s the Grand Arc of the Biblical Narrative, from Genesis to Revelation. Let’s see if we can discover universal truths from these historical, culture-bound slave laws. I updated this post, which is a general introduction to a series on slavery.
2. Torah and Slavery: Israelite Indentured Servants
Scriptures: Exod. 21:2-6; Lev. 25:39-42; Deut. 15:12-18. The Torah balances out fairness with generosity, yet it is still obviously situated in the ancient world–its own cultural context. It is always best to evaluate these ancient texts on their own terms and in their own times. Let’s see what we can discover. For comparison, this post includes the case of an indentured servant in colonial Philadelphia.
3. Torah and Slavery: Impoverished Father Sells His Daughter to Be a ‘Secondary Wife’
Scripture: Exod. 21:7-11. In a culture of arranged marriage and widespread poverty, fathers in the ancient Near East did this long before the Torah existed. Now the Torah has to intervene and tell the men what the daughter’s legal rights were. This post also looks at polygamy.
4. Torah and Slavery: What Happened When Masters Punished Their Slaves?
Scriptures: Exod. 21:20-21, 26-27; Lev. 25:43, 46. There were two cultural (and unpleasant) facts in the ancient Near East, long before the Torah existed: (1) Masters hit their slaves to punish them, and (2) slaves had secondary status. How does the Torah intervene and regulate those two pre-existing facts? (I also include cases of a servant girl dying allegedly from a beating and a servant boy who was flogged for theft, in colonial Philadelphia, just for comparison.)
5. Torah and Slavery: Protecting Slave Women from Injustice
Scripture: Lev. 19:20-22. One OT scholar says that this law protected a slave woman when she was caught in the middle between three men.
6. Torah and Slavery: Foreign Slaves
Scriptures: Lev. 25:44-46 and Deut. 23:15-16 (and Exod. 21:16, again, with its parallel Deut. 24:7). As we have observed in this series, slavery was a cultural fact of the ancient Near East. This post also has two parallel cases in colonial Virginia.
7. Torah and Slavery: Marrying Captives of War
I updated this post. Scripture: Deuteronomy 21:10-14. I knew a kid named Carl at elementary school, my contemporary. He was half European-American and half Japanese. His dad had married a Japanese girl after WWII and brought her over here.
Does Torah Really Order Girl to Marry Her Rapist against Her Father’s Will?
Scripture: Deuteronomy 22:28-29 and Exodus 22:16-17. Is the titled question true? Or are there circumstances that clarify what was really going on? A parallel case in colonial Philadelphia is also included here.
Warning to Evolving, Progressive Churches: Danger Signs
You may not see it, but Progressive Christianity is not the right path for you. Here are signs that you are putting yourself at risk of going past what is written in Scripture. Solutions are also offered here.
Warning to Evolving, Progressive Churches: Authority of Scripture
Progressives deny the full authority of Scripture, particularly about sex and personal conduct. It restricts their style. They characterize a love for Scripture as “bibliolatry.” Continue reading
Warning to Evolving, Progressive Churches: Marriage and Sex
How much do progressive pastors and other leaders rule the church on these complex issues? How much are they changing the King’s original intent for his kingdom?
Warning to Evolving, Progressive Churches: Judgment Is Coming
I would be derelict in my duty as a teacher not to discuss this very biblical truth.
Messianic Prophecies
This a table of Messianic prophecies, which go a long way in building up our faith and the reliability of the Bible. It also answers the question: How does this post help me grow in God?
Matthew 27:52-53 and Appearance of Holy People: Pious Fiction or Fact?
Those two verses say that “many” bodies of holy people who had “fallen asleep” (i.e. died) were raised from their tombs and entered Jerusalem and appeared to many. Is this fact or pious fiction?
Did the Centurion or His Emissaries Approach and Speak to Jesus?
Three options can solve the puzzle. Scriptures: Matthew 8:5-13 and Luke 7:1-10.
Triumphal Entry: Did Jesus Straddle Two Animals?
The critics have such disrespect and low regard for the Gospels that they believe Matthew actually wrote that Jesus straddled two animals during his triumphal entry. But maybe a Greek noun and a pronoun can clarify the problem for openminded readers,
Solving Passover Chronology Problems Between John and Synoptics
How are the chronological differences to be reconciled?
Did the Prophets Predict That the Messiah Would Be Called a Nazarene?
Once again, the hostile critics pounce on Matthew’s perfectly legitimate and culturally acceptable use Old Testament themes and words.
Did Matthew Mistakenly Attribute Verses from Zechariah to Jeremiah?
Did Matthew commit an error? What does this mean for inerrancy, if he did? If ….
When Was the Temple Curtain Torn in Two?
Wow. Now we have entered the realm of nitpicking to the nth degree. We have to move grains of sand one at a time with tweezers.
Jairus’s Daughter in Three Gospels: Do the Differences ‘DESTROY’ the Truth of the Story?
There are definitely differences in the three accounts of Jairus’s daughter being raised from the dead, in Matthew, Mark, and Luke. But do these differences blind us to the central truth of the story?
Jesus Calls Certain Disciples in Four Gospels. Do the Accounts Contradict?
Are the four Gospel writers all that clumsy, or do they employ the story teller’s art to narrate the story of these disciples from the writers’ own point of view?
A Leper in the Hands of an Angry Jesus?
Would Jesus show indignation or anger towards a leper, a needy man? Hostile readers pounce on some ambiguity.
Why Did Luke Switch the Sequence in the Temptation Passages?
Scripture: Matthew 4:1-11 and Luke 4:1-13. The second and third temptations were switched in Luke Gospel from the sequence in Matthew’s Gospel. Hostile critics and readers pounce on the differences and conclude that the Gospel are unreliable. Are the critics right?
Was Luke’s Report about a Worldwide Census Wrong?
Luke records that Caesar ordered a worldwide census, during the governorship of Quirinius, in Syria (Luke 2:1-2). Critics have spotted some chronological problems. Luke may have been wrong. Is the problem solvable with sound reason and historical digging?
Common Details in Matthew’s and Luke’s Birth Narratives
Did Matthew really believe that baby Jesus was never circumcised?
Differences in Gospel Parallels = Differences in OT Parallels
Hostile critics turn molehills into mountains. They apply unequal weights and measures to the Old Testament and the synoptic Gospels and John. That’s unfair. The Gospel writers were conforming to Old Testament precedence. Here’s the evidence.
What Is Middle Knowledge (Molinism)?
I only briefly discuss this model / theory of knowledge. This is philosophical theology (in which I am not an expert). But this particular theory has, believe it or not, Scriptural support. (Yes, I was surprised too.)
What Happened to Judas Iscariot’s Body?
Another seeming Bible contradiction disappears, when we look closely at the accounts in Matthew 27 and Acts 1.
Who Were the Nephilim?
Life is getting strange with the onslaught of Artificial Intelligence (AI). The issue of the Nephilim is “enormous” and “gigantic” in the American church right now. Can giants be edited through AI and faked and published on youtube and other platforms? Some youtube teachers and prophets claim that they actually do appear, apart from AI.
Ancient Heresy of Gnosticism and Its Postmodern Teachers
Gnosticism is alive and well today, disguised in various forms of postmodernism. It is being taught today. Let’s see if we can see through the disguises and get to the truth.
Gnosticism: An Introduction
What are gnosticism and Gnostic writings? This post gives you the basics about those writings, and how they veer off from the New Testament.
1. Gifts of the Spirit in Early Church Fathers
These are the written testimony of the church fathers before or a little after the council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. They teach that the gifts were for their days, after the apostles died.
2. Healing and Deliverance in Early Church Fathers
These are the written testimony of the church fathers before or a little after the council of Nicaea in 325 A.D. They teach that the healings and deliverances (exorcisms) were for their days, after the apostles died.
3. Prophecies, Visions, and Hearing from God in Early Church Fathers
These church fathers flourished before or a little after the Nicaean Council in AD 325. They believed in prophecies, dreams and vision. Some even got them, after the apostles died.
A Misunderstood Biblical Command: “Don’t Judge!”
This is an easy-to-follow word study of key terms in the New Testament and a close look at Matthew 7:1-5. Let’s understand what it really means in context. (I updated this post.)
Is the Atonement for ‘Many’ or ‘All’ People?
This is a study on “many” in Matthew 20:28 and Mark 10:45 (The Son of Man ” gives his life a ransom for ‘many'”). We can further ask, did Christ die only for the elect (limited atonement) or for all and everyone (unlimited or universal or general atonement)? To answer those questions, I also review other atonement passages.
1. The Kingdom of God: Was Jesus a Pacifist?
To answer that question, we must separate the Kingdom of God from the Kingdom of Caesar. Part One in a four-part series.
2. The Gospels: Was Jesus a Pacifist?
To answer that question, we look at four episodes in the Gospels: John the Baptist and some soldiers; Jesus and a centurion; an apparent command to use a sword against a disciple’s family; and two swords during Jesus’ arrest.
3. Were the Early Christians Pacifists?
Did they pick up swords to stop the persecution and control nonconformists? Or did they teach that the state should lay down its swords to have peace, kind of like “defund the police” in the first century?
4. Can Christians Join the Military or Police Force?
The question is really asking whether they can kill in the name of the law or the Constitution. What do the Scriptures say?
Sorcerer Struck with Blindness
Scripture: Acts 13:6-12. He was not your average magician. He was also a false prophet and deceiver.
Ten Big Differences between Christianity and Other Religions
These are the “big ten” reasons that go a long way to explain why Christianity is still the fastest growing religion in the world and why it gains converts from the other religions.
New Testament Must Always Filter Old Testament
American Bible teachers appear confused about biblical interpretation between the Old Testament (OT) and the New Testament (NT).
Who Were the ‘Sons of God’ in Genesis?
Who were the “sons of God” mentioned in Genesis 6 and elsewhere? I updated it yet again!
Book of Acts and Paul’s Epistles: Match Made in Heaven?
How closely and often do Acts and Paul’s epistles agree? Fifteen tables, plus two bonus tables, in this post, laying out the parallels.
The Historical Reliability of the Book of Acts
Is the book of Acts historically reliable, in comparison to its own Greco-Roman writing culture? Many tables are included, to answer the question.
Yes, God Communicated to People Outside Ancient Israel
Here are biblical passages that show that people outside of ancient Israel and the law of Moses had a level of the knowledge of God, most likely because God revealed himself to them.
One Decisive Difference Between Sinai Covenant and New Covenant
This difference is what Jesus established and the New Testament authors laid out in the Scriptures. It’s really very simple.
Do Christians Have to ‘Keep’ the Ten Commandments?
Do we ignore the Old Law so we can be free to live as we wish in the New Covenant? What about Christian Sabbath keeping? What does the Bible really say?
What Does the New Covenant Retain from the Old?
How much continuity and discontinuity is there between the New Covenant and the Sinai Covenant? This article is designed to answer the confusion between hyper-grace on the one side and legalism on the other.
1. Church Fathers and Matthew’s Gospel
The Church fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that Matthew wrote the first Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
2. Church Fathers and Mark’s Gospel
The Fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that Mark wrote the second Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
3. Church Fathers and Luke’s Gospel
The Fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that Luke wrote the third Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
4. Church Fathers and John’s Gospel
The Fathers quoted here lived in the second to third centuries. They are unanimous that John wrote the fourth Gospel, and it was authoritative for them–so it should be for us too.
Does God Cause Natural Disasters to Punish People Today?
Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, wildfires, earthquakes and tsunamis—natural disasters slam humankind every year. Did God do that? What does the Bible say? Two different covenants make all the difference—a progressive revelation.
What Happens at Judgment to People Who Never Heard Gospel?
God is loving and merciful, but how far do those attributes go at final judgment? Let’s explore this complex issue.
How Jesus Christ Fulfills the Law: Matthew 5:17-19
Christ fulfilled or paid off your debt to the Law. It’s paid in full. He accomplishes this by fulfilling the holiness demand in the law and the fullest revelation of God’s character.
How Christians Should Interpret the Old Testament
When the Old and New Testaments are interpreted carefully and rightly, using Scripture to interpret Scripture, this truth will emerge: Jesus Christ fulfills the old law, in many, many areas.
What Does ‘Turn the Other Cheek’ Mean?
Does the verse allow violence to be done to Christians, without self-defense?
The Biblical Norm for Marriage
In the current confusion in society, we need clarity. The Bible still has wisdom to teach us, if we listen.
When Jesus Used Harsh Language
Don’t try this at home or elsewhere, unless called of God to take down an entire religious system!
Why Did Ananias and Sapphira Drop Dead?
In the book of Acts, they dropped dead. Why? To understand what happened, it is important to keep the Old Sinai Covenant and the New Covenant separate.
‘Revenge’ in the Old and New Testaments: Eye for Eye, Tooth for Tooth
Does the Old Testament demand literal retaliation for a wrong? Should an eye or a tooth be gouged or knocked out—physically? What about the teaching of Jesus? Does he raise our vision to a higher calling? How do we forgive a tort or a physical injury? How do we get compensated for damages?
Luke’s Birth Narrative: Pagan Myth or Sacred Story?
Many claim that the birth narratives in the Gospels–here the third Gospel–were merely reshaped copies of Greco-Roman myths. True?
Reconciling Matthew’s and Luke’s Genealogies: Mission: Impossible?
Some scholars say they are irreconcilable, while others say reconciling them is not so difficult. I favor plausible harmonization. It’s all in the family. Bonus: see the American family “the Roosevelts” in a chart for parallels.
Women in Ministry: Replies to Objections
Updated: Here are twenty-nine objections in a list that complementarians (restrictionists) raise. Replies are given to each one. Many important verses are discussed here, like Genesis 1-3, Galatians 2:28, Ephesians 5:22-24, 1 Timothy 2:11-15, 1 Peter 3:1-7, 1 Corinthians 7, 11:2-16, and Acts 6:5.
What Is a Miracle?
What is it? Do they happen today? Can you experience one?
Deconstruction: The Language Games People Play
Everybody seems to use the term. I’ve seen it in movie reviews. “The scene was ‘deconstructed’ nicely.” But what does it really mean?
Postmodern Roots of Leftist Policies
Prepare to get your hands dirty. This post attempts to dig up the roots of wild and crazy public policies.
God’s Love and Grace in Hebrews, General Letters, and Revelation
All the verses are here. This post is good for your personal edification or for pastors and teachers who wish to build a Bible study or sermon series.
God’s Love and Grace in Paul’s Epistles
All the verses are here. They are great for your personal edification or for pastors and teachers who wish to build a Bible study or sermon series.
God’s Love and Grace in the Gospels and Acts
It’s about God’s love and favor, not yours for him. Great for a series of sermons or Bible studies or your personal edification.
God’s Love and Grace in the Prophets
Here are the verses where the words love and grace in their various forms appear in the biblical prophets. Great for a series of sermons and Bible studies or your personal edification.
God’s Love and Grace in Job, Psalms, and Proverbs
This is for your Bible study and sermon series and personal edification. All the words for love and grace in these three books of the biblical Wisdom literature are found here. Great for your personal edification or a series in a Bible study or sermons.
God’s Love and Grace in the Torah
The Torah is the first five books of the Bible. Yes, God’s love and grace can be found in this section of Scripture. It is not always and only wrath and judgment. Great for your personal edification or a series in a Bible study or sermons.
What Is the Gospel?
How can we proclaim it if we don’t know what it is? After a basic definition offered just below, the gospel also has multiple parts to it. Let’s see what they are. (I recently updated this post.)
8. Postmodernism and the Bible: Conclusion
This article is the conclusion to the series on postmodernism and the Bible. A good summary of the entire series.
7. Interpreting the Bible and Finding the Truth
The words “the truth” will shock postmodernists and deconstructionists. Good. But it asks: How do we study and interpret the Bible? How do we find truth which really is out there, around us? This post is a simple reply to claims of unsolvable ambiguities in the Bible.
6. The Reconstructed Jesus: What the Bible Actually Says
It is now time to counter the extreme views spelled out in Part Five. Who was Jesus, really?
5. The Deconstructed Jesus
Deconstruction overturns privileged hierarchy and meaning. Defenders promise us that they do not practice Anything Goes in their deconstruction of texts. Do they keep their promise? How do we verify it? Click on this link only if you have courage.
4. Deconstruction: A Primer
Do you want to know what deconstruction really is? Read about it from its practitioners.
3. Postmodern ‘Truth Soup’
Postmodernism has produced all sorts of confusing interpretations of Scripture. For the postmodernist, Scripture has turned into a pot of stew.
2. The Origins of Postmodernism
Does postmodernism spring out of the head of Zeus unconceived or misconceived? Or does it carry a heavy debt on its back to earlier movements and trends?
1. Postmodernism and the Bible: Introduction
So begins an eight-past series. In the late 1980s or early 1990s, a pastor reported this conversation (as I recall it) between him and a woman from his large congregation. She apparently wanted him to approve of something.
What the Bible Really Says about Abortion and Prenatal Life
Despite the confusion circulating over the web for years, the Bible unambiguously upholds the sanctity of prenatal life.
1. Torah and Slavery: Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar
Scripture to be studied: Gen. 16:1-4. Hagar was a handmaid to Abraham’s wife, Sarah. Critics claim that Abraham could have sex with Hagar whenever he wanted because she was a slave. (This post also looks into polygamy.
15. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels: Conclusion
We come at last to the end of the series. This part, summarizing the previous fourteen articles, can serve as a guide for which article the reader may need in the future. The series has always been about having confidence in the four Gospels so the gospel of the kingdom can go forth.
14. Similarities among John’s Gospel and the Synoptic Gospels
The number of similarities, even between the Gospel of John on the one side and Matthew, Mark, and Luke on the other, is remarkable.
13. Are There Contradictions in the Gospels?
When you read the first three Gospels, you are likely to observe countless similarities. And that is the dominant picture: the places, the names, the crowds, the rural setting, busy Jerusalem. However, some skeptics see insurmountable problems.
12. Eyewitness Testimony in John’s Gospel
The author of this Gospel made sure he used eyewitness testimony; indeed he was an eyewitness!
11. Eyewitness Testimony in Luke’s Gospel
Luke researched those who knew Jesus from the “beginning,” his key criterion.
10. Eyewitness Testimony in Mark’s Gospel
The evidence suggests that Peter was indeed a portrait painter, but he used words alone. Jesus was his subject.
9. Authoritative Testimony in Matthew’s Gospel
This article rounds a corner from the traditions transmitted before the Gospels were written to the Gospels themselves, as we have them now. Do they enjoy eyewitness testimony at their foundation?
8. Did Some Disciples Take Notes During Jesus’ Ministry?
This is a question that must be explored. At least twelve scholars say it probably happened. If so, this gives a huge boost to the reliability of the Gospels.
7. What Is the Q ‘Gospel’?
No need to be afraid of this document. If it existed, Matthew and Luke used it. If they weren’t afraid, why should you be?
6. Reliable Gospel Transmissions
We continue the series, and this post is about how the stories and teachings and memories of the deeds of Jesus were transmitted before the first three Gospels were written down.
5. The Gospel Traditions
With this article we turn a corner away from archaeology and non-Christian written references to Gospel persons (the last three articles). Now we discuss the preservation of Jesus’ ministry — his words and activity — after his crucifixion (and resurrection) and up to the time when the Gospels were written.
4. Did Jesus Even Exist?
If you throw a rock in a pond, does it produce ripples? Did the life of Jesus produce no effects at all? Are the ripples delusions or real? Now let’s study the historical evidence. If you have a son or daughter or a co-worker or husband who challenges you, send him or her to this link.
3. Archaeology and John’s Gospel
Part 3 in the series that explains why the Gospels are reliable and lists some discoveries.
John 10:34-36 and Psalm 82: Who Were the ‘Gods’ and ‘Sons of Most High’?
Who were the “gods” and “sons of the Most High” in Psalm 82:6? Whom does Jesus say they were in John 10:34-36? Many commentators offer their opinion, and they are unanimous about who they were not. Now what about–who they were?
2. Archaeology and the Synoptic Gospels
The Synoptics are Matthew, Mark, and Luke. Archaeology affirms their reliability. This post lists some discoveries.
1. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels: Introduction to Series
So begins a fifteen-part series on the historical reliability of the four Gospels.
“The Kingdom of God Suffers Violence, and Violent People Plunder It.”
Matt. 11:12 has puzzled many Bible interpreters. What does it mean in its textual context?
Matthew 7:21-23: “I Never Knew You, Depart from Me!”
These verses are very sobering. What do they mean in your life and mine?
The Son of Man Claims God’s Authority to Forgive Sins on Earth
Mark 2:1-12 says that the Son of Man–Jesus–forgave a paralytic’s sins. Does this mean that Jesus claimed authority that only God has, thus making himself equal to God? Did he use a Hebrew word for “forgiveness” which only God can offer?
Why Didn’t Jesus Know the Day or the Hour of His Return?
Why did Jesus say that not even the Son knows the day or the hour of the Second Coming? Puzzling.
Death of Nadab and Abihu in Leviticus 10 from a NT Perspective
Those were Aaron the high priest’s eldest sons, and they mixed strange fire against the law, and God judged them instantly. Why? Is God a petty tyrant? Most of this post is concerned with this issue, while the rest of Leviticus 10 gives further instructions for the priests generally.
Punishments in Leviticus 20 from a NT Perspective
The punishments are not pretty, but we can still learn some basic principles of how seriously God takes sin. An extended discussion on the death penalty from a New Testament perspective is included here, at the end.
Deconstructing Gender Differences
The left! Sexual nihilism. Anything goes or nothing goes. So what? Who cares? In that spirit, I don’t know anymore what’s worse: shouting “fire!” in a crowded theater or “confused boy!” in a crowded girls’ locker room (said a clever radio host).
Does Book of Acts Teach Modern Communism or Socialism?
Some say yes. What are the historical and social context of three key passages?
Christ’s Death on Cross = Cosmic Child Abuse?
Critics say: “God sent his Son to the cross and poured his just wrath on him? Would any loving Father do that? It’s cosmic child abuse!” True or a misunderstanding?
Who Was Melchizedek?
He seems to be a mysterious figure. Some say he was a Christophany (manifestation) of the preincarnate Christ. But who was he according to the entire Scriptures that mention him? An old-fashioned Bible study here.
The Wrath of God in the New Testament
It is never expressed against his New Covenant community (unless you get a speeding ticket).
The Wrath of God in the Old Testament
What’s with all the wrathin’ and a-smitin’ in the Old Testament? If grace teachers don’t explore this topic, some people may accuse them of hiding unpleasant truths and focusing on feel-good, sugarcoated doctrines alone.
What Is Postmodernism?
It’s where we live nowadays, and we’re not going back. We got to examine it.
The Skeptical Sneering Age
Let’s face it. For much of the Twentieth Century and into the current one, we’ve been living in the Sneering Age among intellectuals. Or it could be called the Age of Contempt or the Age of Hyper-skepticism.
Three Cures for the Skeptical Sneering Age!
This topic may seem obscure and irrelevant to your life, but think again. How can you read the Bible and its historical background, for example, if you let hyper-skeptics kick sand in your face during your devotionals and personal study? This article provides three ways for you to be confident.
What Is the Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit?
A small percentage of people are anxious about this, but what does the Bible say? Can people commit this sin today?
Another Fatal Flaw in ‘Death Roe’
Roe v. Wade (1973) is important to Americans. However, let’s expose one more weakness in it. Then it might cease being so important because it was so badly argued.
What Is Moral Law?
It is sometimes called natural law. Can reason and the conscience perceive it? What does the Bible say?
Word Study on Judgment
What does the Bible really say about the judge and his judgment? Let’s do an old-fashioned biblical word study.
‘Fatal’ Flaws in ‘Death Roe’
They are certainly fatal for the babies. Roe v. Wade (1973) needs to be critiqued yet again, since it is so crucial.
Deconstructing Roe v. Wade
One of the few benefits of deconstruction is that it takes down overwrought orthodoxy. Roe v. Wade has achieved a divine status, like a textual god. But it’s possible to expose its feet of clay.
1. Genesis 1-11 in Its Ancient Religious Environment
It is unrealistic to expect that the ancient author of those chapters lived in a sound-proof bubble and was not influenced by his religious culture. He rejected some of it, but accepted elements. But which elements? And which criteria to accept or reject them were decisive? Part 1 of 5 in a series on Gen. 1-11.
2. Reading Genesis 1 as Originally Intended
Why did the author of Genesis 1 choose six + one (seven) days of creation and not three or ten or twelve–or no days at all? He plainly tells us why. Part 2 of 5 in the series on Gen. 1-11.
3. Adam and Evolution: Five Options
We need to face a brute fact. Evolution is here to stay. It started out as a rising tide, but now it is a tsunami. Are we going to flail and punch it–or surf it? How do we interpret the biblical passages about Adam and Eve? Five options are offered here. Part 3 of 5 in a series on Gen. 1-11.
4. Save Our Ship! Rescuing Noah’s Ark from Flood of Science
It’s time to read the ancient story in its own cultural context, not ours. This post is part 4 of 5 in a series on Gen. 1-11.
5. The Real Significance of Genealogies in Genesis 5-11
If you were to write up a genealogy of your family, you would follow certain rules or conventions. You are of your own times. When the author of Genesis wrote genealogies in those seven chapters, he followed certain conventions. He was of his own times. Part 5 of 5 in a series on Gen. 1-11.
1. New Testament Manuscripts: Preliminary Questions and Answers
This article is the first in a four-part series on New Testament textual criticism. It provides the basics on this science and art. It also answers the question, How do I grow closer to God?
2. Basic Facts On Producing New Testament Manuscripts
This article comes second in a four-part series on New Testament textual criticism. It answers questions about the material and process of making the pages of a document, along with the scribal art of writing. It also answers the question: How does this post help me grow closer to God?
3. Discovering and Classifying New Testament Manuscripts
This article provides basic facts on how some of the New Testament manuscripts were discovered and how they are classified. The post answers this important question: How does this post help me grow closer to God?
4. The Manuscripts Tell The Story: The New Testament Is Reliable
This article, the last one in the four-part series, has a focused goal. It provides evidence from the best New Testament textual critics that it is possible to reach back to the original (autograph) books and letters of the New Testament, though the originals no longer physically exist. This post also answers the question: How do I grow closer to God?
Interpreting the Bible and Accommodation
God accommodated humanity when he inspired ancient authors to write infallible Scripture to ancient people. Now we follow him by accommodating ancient Scripture when it seems to make scientific claims about the world of nature.
Augustine Says No to Silly Interpretations of Genesis
Augustine lived from 354 to 430. He was easily one of the most profound thinkers who ever lived. His words are relevant today.
Billy Graham and Evolution
Startling statement from the world’s most famous evangelist.
Christian Scientists Comment on Young Earth Creationism
This post is designed to encourage believers who have walked away from church and seekers who will not consider Christ because of ultraliteral interpretations of Gen. 1-11. Many of us Christians do not share this view, but accept science. 98% of scientists do not accept that view, either.
Evolution = Intelligent Design = God’s Design
God’s method of creation is through evolution. Call it slow-motion creation beginning 13.7 billion years ago (give or take), and it is still going on today! People can know their creator personally.
Works Cited
Here is a list of the principal works referenced or used at this site. More will be added as time goes on, so please check back.
Dr. Jim's Essential Bible Teaching 